Tag: Saroj Kumar Rath

By Saroj Kumar Rath

Orissa also known as Kalinga had a fabled past. Recorded history of the province authenticates those fairytale-fabled histories. From travelers to raconteurs and from potentates to commoners of yore years have described Kalinga’s history in such word character that the reading of the same makes one believe that the fabled past of Orissa is a living reality even today. Their narration about the glory and grandeur of Kalinga led the readers believe as if the fabled land still exists. However, suddenly the great civilisational existence gave way to slavery of mind and body as in surprising turn of events the whole populace subjugated to foreign invasion. The colonisers became colonised without an iota of a resistance. The province, which conducted itself admirably during peace and peril for millennia had succumbed to simple trickery and to a few mitigating forces of foreign and domestic origin. In this article, I have discussed three principal subjects. Firstly, how Orissa had achieved legendary status in the ancient time; secondly how those achievements and glories vanished and how the province cleared ways for its invaders; and finally how the present generation has forgotten the fabled past and succumbed to the foreign imposed subjugation from where it never managed an escape till the present time.

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.12754407

By Saroj Kumar Rath

Extremism perpetuated by Islamic organizations in the Northeastern region has received near no scholarly scrutiny despite the overwhelming evidence that there is rise of extremist violence amongst the Muslim population of Northeast India. A less known fact about Assam is, it is the only province, among the Indian provinces, which successfully defeated Islamic invasion throughout the Islamic rule in India. Surprisingly, Islam made its rampant entry into the province during the Christian-led East India Company and British Crown rule in India. It was the time when British took full control of Assam. Exponential population growth among the adherents of Islam coupled with unrestricted influx of migrants from the neighbouring areas changed the demographic composition of Assam. The growth of Muslim population particularly since the turn of 20^th century directly pitted the community against the ancient local Assamese culture. The infighting, when aided by outside powers, soon received a transnational character where global Islamic extremists opened contact with Assamese Muslims and started guiding on how to protect Islam and establish a model Islamic State in the region. Two issues would be dealt in this paper. Firstly, the paper would make an empirical analysis on how Islamic extremism permeates into the Northeastern India and secondly, the research would scrutinize linear contributing factors responsible for the growth and thriving of extremism in the region with special focus on Pakistan’s motivation to take over Assam and support armed groups.

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.12784403